The whole KITT and kaboodle...

Ok, I just forced my family (yes, including Mike) to watch the DVR'd series premiere of Knight Rider.

I loved it. I didn't know how much I knew about the infamous Michael Knight and the Knight Industries Two Thousand (K.I.T.T.) car... until I found myself putting the show on 'pause' to explain to my two children who the original was (my son's jaw dropped when I told him the original was the 'Hoff...), what his mission was, who F.L.A.G is (the foundation for law and government) and the entire KITT team.

Anyway - I sure am glad I DVR'd the whole thing cuz the commercials would have turned my stomach - that aside, the serious product placement was getting out of control with all the Fords everywhere and the constant close up's of the Ford logo, sheesh - and me being a GM man (yeah, I know I drive a Dodge - but come on Cummins kicks serious boo-tay) was very saddened by the replacement of the original Firebird

with a Mustang -

But hey, if you are going to replace a GM - you do it with a Shelby GT500KR - right!

I like that 'Doc Holiday' (Val Kilmer) graces the show with his voice for the car. Overall, to be honest, the car is the best part of the whole show.

Guess who's (or is it whose) birthday is today.

No.. Not Lincoln or Washington - although it is "President's Day"...



It's hers....



do you remember her... do you know who it is?

If I tell you - you will feel really, really OLD.


She just turned 40

...along with

Dr. Dre (43)
Matt Dillon (44)
Vanna White (51)
John Travolta (54)
Cybill Shepard (58)
Yoko Ono (75)


give up yet.. or have you guessed?


It is Molly Ringwald...

remember

Apple bottom jeans and the boots with the fur....

I have been trying to find a way to get this song on my blog - it happens to be my favorite right now...

Then I stumbled on this ad... which really showcases the reason why I like this song - it makes me dance... yeah, sorta like the 'kids' in the video... best you just watch it...



I saw the original movie and love it. Now I want to see this one - it opened valentine's day - but I had other plans...

Valentine's Day, actually Night

Well, the dudes took the ladies out for a night of GREAT food and even better company.

I hired a car to pick up the group...

and take us to "the Melting Pot" for their special Valentine's Dinner. We enjoyed a 5 course meal and an evening with great friends. Seriously, if you have never eaten here - you have missed true "dining".

Darrenn really began to enjoy himself on the ride home....

Thanks for the great night Darren & Jenny and Tim & Michelle!

The PRESIDENT signed the "Stimulus Package"

What does it mean when you have a REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT - a president that is concerned with the nation's economy. Ok all you haters out there...

The Fed. Stimulus Package

President Bush signed the Fed. Stimulus Package today.

This should bring new loan business.

1. FHA......

New loan limits of 125% of median price with a max. of$729.750. Reverse mortgages, 203(k) loans and standard loans shouldincrease.

2. Conforming Loan Limits.....

Could be raised to as high as $725,000.

3. Tax Rebates......

More cash for buyers! $300 to $1,200

4. Refinances....

Will become affordable again!Plus....

5. FHA Secure....

Helping owners with teaser rates to refinance.

6. Project "Lifeline".....

Some homeowners will be given the opportunityto put the foreclosure process on hold for 30 days while lenders work outa way to make the mortgage more affordable.

Update on the Strike

...and now for some important news:

In case you have read every book in the library and are wondering when TV will return to it's regularly scheduled programming...

I stumbled on this post: When do our shows come back?

Comedies will return to the air first after the strike ends, because of shorter production schedules and leftover scripts, while serialized dramas take longest. Most shows will return from mid- to late April with four to six new episodes.

A partial list:Expected to return with new episodes this spring
•Grey's Anatomy (ABC)
•Desperate Housewives (ABC)
•The CSIs (CBS)
•Ugly Betty (ABC)
•House (Fox)
•ER (NBC)
•Two and a Half Men (CBS)
•The Law & Orders (NBC)
•Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
•Big Bang Theory (CBS)
•Lost (ABC)
•Criminal Minds (CBS)
•The Office (NBC)
•30 Rock (NBC)
•My Name Is Earl (NBC)
•Without a Trace (CBS)
•Cold Case (CBS)
•Samantha Who? (ABC)
•NCIS (CBS)
•Gossip Girl (CW)

Back, but not until later
•Pushing Daisies (ABC)
•Dirty Sexy Money (ABC)
•Private Practice (ABC)
•Chuck (NBC)
•Life (NBC)
•Heroes (NBC)
•24 (Fox)

Gone for good
•Big Shots (ABC)
•Bionic Woman (NBC)
•Cane (CBS)
•Cavemen (ABC)
•Carpoolers (ABC)
•Journeyman (NBC)
•K-Ville (Fox)

TV Guide is keeping an up-to-the-hour update on the shows... here is what they say...

24 -Season 7 likely postponed until January '09.
30 Rock -Expected to shoot 5 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.
Chuck -No new episodes until fall.
Criminal Minds -Expected to shoot 4 to 9 new episodes to air in March/April/May.
CSI -Expected to shoot 4 to 8 new episodes to air in March/April/May.
CSI: Miami -Expected to shoot 4 to 9 new episodes to air in March/April/May.
Heroes -No new episodes expected until fall.
House -Expected to shoot 4 to 6 new episodes to air in April/May.
Lost -Six pre-strike episodes remain. Five additional episodes could air this season.
NCIS -Expected to shoot 5 to 9 new episodes to air in March/April/May.
The Office -Expected to shoot 6 new episodes to air in April/May.
Pushing Daisies -No new episodes until fall.

Huge discussion... simple answer...

Well, at the LOST season premiere we all had our opinions of who was in "Jacob's Chair".

Well many websites, blogs and discussion boards have posted this picture...

There is a conversation with Hurley himself here. Where he reveals that it is Jack's dad in the chair.

But why?

The other question we discussed was, "Who's eye was that in Jacob's house?"

Check out this website for possible answers and a very clean HD clip that shows the whole face of the person - I still can't tell who it was.

Stuff to ponder.

I wanted to know which candidate I really agree with the most so, I took this quiz and got this result.

	John McCain Score: 70	Agree Iraq Taxes Stem-Cell Research Health Care Abortion Social Security Line-Item Veto Energy Death Penalty Gun Control Environment Education	Disagree Immigration Marriage
-- Take the Quiz! --

Huckabee was 2nd with a 62% agreement.

It was no surprise at all that I am in 5% agreement with Hillary (she is on the bottom of the list) and we only see eye for an eye (I mean eye to eye) on the death penalty.

How do you compare to your favorite candidate(s)?

Does anyone wonder....

Whatever happened to this guy?



Didn't think so...

A fact I just couldn't live without!

26

So.. Word has it Jenny needs help in Children's Ministry... hmmmm....

HT: Tanya

MouseAdventure!!!!

Registration is in 1hour and 40 minutes....

And TEAM "BLOOMIN' COCKROACHES" is all geared up and ready to win!!!
Last time we placed in the top 10 - not bad for a 45 year old and three teens.
Last time there were some real 'cherry pickers' in the Family Division - this year we are forced to compete against the adults as our team will not have anyone under 12.... so, our goal will have to be to beat team "Blew by you" (or whatever name they choose).

My Fav's

This is my favorite band right now.

I love the meaning behind these videos.



Yeah, I know - they are canadian... well - perhaps Canada does have a redeeming quality!
See, God knew I needed to be humbled about that...




How could you NOT love this band!

This song is just cool...

THIS JUST IN....

Global warming levels are increasing and all of California is urged to reduce individual carbon footprints by reducing the use of fossil fuels.

In other news....

Winter Storm warning....

From the National Weather Service:

IN CALIFORNIA SNOW WILL SPREAD ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS IN THE SAN BERNARDINO AREA WITH A MIX OF SNOW AND RAIN INITIALLY BETWEEN 5000 AND 6000 FEET. STRONG SOUTH WINDS SHOULDPUSH THE SNOW LEVEL TO 7000 FEET BY SUNDAY MORNING. BY SUNDAY EVENING THE SNOW LEVELS WILL LOWER BACK TO 5000 FEET OR LOWER BEHIND THE COLD FRONT. HEAVY SNOW SHOWERS IN THE COLD UNSTABLE AIRMASS WILL CONTINUE INTO SUNDAY NIGHT.

If this warming trend keeps up I am going to have to buy a jacket!

Don't take my word for it!

http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=58198@kcbs.dayport.com

Seriously though - did you see those mountains that bracket our area... I have never seen so much snow - so beautiful. Too bad that with all the global warming it won't stay around... Yeah, right!

==UNDER CONSTRUCTION==

Oh my.

My eyes have seen...

My ears have heard...

The future is coming...

Christmas 2008

Check this out.

If you have an HD computer (like I do) you should see it in HD... my gosh! These paramount guys know what the heck they are doing!

You all know that I am a Star Trek fan. Not a Trek Geek. But a fan. The newest movie in the franchise is coming at Christmas - Star Trek XI and I can't wait. This movie is the one which introduces the very first enterprise NCC-1701 (No A, B, C, D or E...).

OH, I can't wait.

Watch them build the Enterprise at the San Francisco yards orbiting earth, here. This first Constitution Class starship was launched on 2245 under the command of Robert April and then Christopher Pike... but that is another story.

Here is the pre-release of the cast - I think they made really good choices!

Captain Christopher Pike

Bruce Greenwood /

Captain James T. Kirk

William Shatner / Christopher Pine

Spock

Leonard Nemoy / Zachary Quinto

Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy

DeForest Kelly / Karl Urban

Montgomery "Scotty" Scott

Simon Pegg / James Doohan

Nyota Uhura

Nichelle Nichols / Zoe Saldana

Haikiru Sulu

George Takei / John Cho

Well... I told you life has changed....

Dawn's newest pages!

OH NO!!!

Well... tonight Michelle Lasch came over and taught my wife how to scrapbook digitally.

Michelle is a phenomenal scrapbooker - check out her page!

Here is Dawn's first page:

My life will NEVER be the same!

It's Cookie Time!! but... what? ....

Well, it is that time of the year when my wife and daughter turn into selling freaks...

At every opportunity they are asking people... "Would you like to buy some girl scout cookies?" Talk about embarrassing.

I get very bugged by the end of the sale - and this year, my wife is the 'cookie mom' which means she gets the added privilege of organizing and ordering EVERY girl's order!

There is an added bonus this year - it appears as though the OC Girl Scout council has changed bakers and the traditional cookies have all (except for one) been renamed! Yep, the only cookie name that remains the same is the Thin Mint (Thank goodness!). Yep, no more Samoa's, Trefoils, Dosi Dos, All Abouts, Tag Alongs... they all have new names - same cookie, just a new name... weird....

anyway - Until March sometime - I won't have my normal family... Or... until my daughter reaches her GOAL!

Remembering...

Today I was going through some old CDs that I burned into MP3s way, way back in the day and I came across this song - well, actually, I came across every one of Michael Jackson's songs - Wow, he was GREAT back then... you know, in the 80's -




I read today that February is the 25th anniversary of the Thriller album! Wow... So I had to listen to every MJ song I have (Garhett kept bugging me about it...)

Listening to the music of Michael Jackson made me remember back to the ol' gang that used to hang out - in particular a really good friend - Kevin Terrell. Back then he & I, and a few more friends would work all day, then go out dancing ALL NIGHT - every night if we could -

Yeah, that's one of my dirty little secrets - I love dancing (well I used to love it more when I was younger - I get winded now... suck's being older...) I loved dancing to the music of the 80's -

I can remember when we would go to Dillon's nightclub - yeah, I know it was next to the UCLA campus - but back then - it was more about dancing and less about school. That club was separated by floor/by age/by music - so our friends who were under 21 could go and just hang out on the lower floors - there were floors for rock music, disco music, pop & New Wave... man, that was the place to be.

Of course, when that club got old (or the next night) we would hit up Club 321 in Santa Monica, mostly a new wave club but lots of good music. Now it is a Hooters.

And of course, the king of all dance clubs was Florentine Gardens in Hollywood - yeah, I hear that today it is going to become a fire station, but back in the great ol' 80's it was the best! Another under 21 club - so the whole gang could go - It was really fun and quite memorable!

Yeah, dancing all night in my red leather Michael Jackson meets Eddie Murphy with Prince boots and Jeri-curl perm... yep, earring and all! It was so much fun! I truly miss those days and over the years I have since lost touch with the gang (some for really, really good reasons) but I often wonder what Kevin is doing today and if he ever remembers dancing to Michael Jackson, Jodi Whatley, Culture Club, Wham, Depeche Mode, Tears for Fear, gosh, so many good memories. It really is quite entertaining when you hear a rift from an old 80's song in a "new" song... I usually sing (not good at all) the original song while the new song plays - it annoys the youngsters listening to, what they think is a new song...

How about you - were you an 80's child?

Do you have firsthand knowledge of:

• Clove Cigarettes
• Wearing day-glow
• Ripped sweats (like Flash dance)
• lots of lace and tulle (like Madonna, the bangles, go-go's)
• one glove
• 501's with white socks and penny loafers
• Dancing the thriller line dance - come on, you know you did it!
• T-shirt (pastel color) under a cotton jacket with shoulder pads (Miami Vice)
• Vans (tennis shoes)
• Big hair, lots of hairspray
• Flock of seagulls hair
• break dancing

What music really brings back memories to you?

January 14th - is....

What? You don't know how to talk like Jack...
Here are some samples:

Co-worker: How was your weekend?
You: damnit Bob, we don’t have time for simple questions.
Co-worker: I just asked about your weekend.
You: Dammit. Who are you working for?
Co-worker: Never mind, forget I asked.

Co-worker: Hey man. Did you already get breakfast?
You: I’ve killed 3 people today and no I’ve yet to eat breakfast. Dammit!
Co-worker: Is that a threat?
You: That’s not a threat, that’s a fact.

Boss: Hey, where are the reports I asked for?
(pull out stapler, move towards boss)
You: I think the question you should be asking is how are you going to read the reports after I staple your eyelids to your desk!

...and my personal favorite:
Co-worker: Hey, can you cover for me? I need to run an errand.
You: Let’s get one thing straight: the only reason you’re still conscious is that I don’t want to do your work for you.

Finally, remember that for the whole 24 hours of Talk Like Jack Bauer Day, you cannot go to the bathroom or charge a cell phone. Also, it should only take you a maximum of 3 minutes to get anywhere you are going!

!evisserpmI

What's this?!

A new look...

New and improved for 2008.

Tell me what you think...

Thank you WGA!

You know I am NOT a huge fan of Labor Unions as a whole. But I am continually am impressed by how God uses the most ridiculous things (and people) in our lives for his glory...

Our church as a whole is embarking on reading through the Bible in 1 year... and now, thanks to the stinkin' unions... I don't have any reason not to read!

I am running out of things to watch! Just great! errr, I mean, Thank God!

So basically, the WGA should stay out of work indefinately - Bible in a year... No Prob!

A friend sent me this... It brought a tear to my heart.

Watch it and you will see why. Especially if you have kids.

Hey Homeschoolers... check this out!

Disney's 2nd annual (un)official Homeschool day...

February 1st, 2008

Group photo in front of the castle at 2:00pm SHARP!

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS: (visit the website here)

You get your own ticket to the theme park. You provide your own transportation. Wear Tie-Dye (a t-shirt, a hat, a scarf, shoe strings, a lanyard... any tie-dyed item). You will find other participants throughout the park by looking for their tie-dye! (ok, so I am not so thrilled about this part - but hey, it can be a fun art or science project!).

ALSO JOIN THE:

Disneyland Annual "not back to school day"

Wednesday, September 10th, 2008

Homeschooling is so cool!

Memories of 2007

Remember this?




We need to go back!

What did you do New Year's Eve?

I watched these people become "SingStars"!

That's right, Dawn got Playstation 2's "SingStar" game for Christmas - "80's" and "Amped". Gotta tell ya, if you don't have it - and you are a "Guitar Hero" fan - you Gotta get this game!

Now we need the "Pop" and "Rocks" versions to have the complete set!

Next purchase - gonna have to be the "RockBand" game - blending both of these games into one, plus drums! [insert Tim Allen grunting here].

Thanks to the technology available today - nothing is private anymore!

Rose Bowl Champions 2008!

49 points in the Rose Bowl...

who else?

(certainly not the Illini...)

I am not an avid sports fan - but there is ONE team that I stand behind ALWAYS. USC and the men of Troy. Why? well, honestly there is no other team that is as fierce or as strong. Brent Musberger even said it today - if this team is complete, healthy and ready - they can beat ANY team on the field - and that includes any NFL team as well.

Just read the ESPN comments...

Free to the 1st taker...

We were cleaning out our garage today and Dawn & I have finally decided to part with the ol' treadmill... Now that we (well, ok, mostly Dawn) are avid Gym attenders we have no use for this clothing holder.. um, I mean excellent workout device.


And, as it just so happens, the New Year is upon us, and many, many people have decided to begin a workout routine - so this here Treadmill is is fine condition - yes, it has run about 4billion miles and is a little over 8 years old - but it works (just ask Garhett, he has been using it lately - but now he too is an avid Gym attender).

So, if you are about to start a "new year" workout routine and would like this treadmill, just send me an email or post your desire here and - heck, I will even deliver it to you if you are local...

(please pay no attention to the weeds sticking out of the fence.. sheesh, I said we were cleaning the garage out - not yard work!)

Day ...I don't really know...

It appears as though I have lost track of time. I know we started this trek on December 1st fro LAX... but now it is 12.10.07 and I track 11 days of doing things? I guess I really am on a vacation for the first time... I have lost track of time. I honestly don't even know what day it is .... and I don't care...

All I know is that I have to be at Liberty Tree Tavern at 12:20 today for lunch and then swim all afternoon... then go back to the Magic Kingdom to see Spectro Magic. oh well.. so much for that..

Anyway... we arrived at Disney's flag ship hotel, the Grand Floridian today and after waiting a while for our rooms went over to Epcot to spend the afternoon and then have dinner and meet the travel agent for our special Dessert and Illuminations...

OH MY GOSH... This is amazing - We were given VIP passes and lead to a private terrace where we were treated to a spread of desserts and drinks (coffee, tea, hot cocoa, punch, etc..) and private seating just for the travel agent and her friends. Front row seating for the illuminations fireworks show - which was amazing, with laser lighting, special effects, oh, it was beautiful. After the show (by this time the park was closed) we were lead to a "special event". The entire group (140 people) were lead back stage, behind epcot to the rear entrance of "soaring" it is the Florida version of Soaring over California - it is basically the same ride - for a private ride! We felt so special to get to see the "backside of Disney" (that sounds weird). We are literally feeling like royalty on this trip!

What a night to remember!

Day ten... The MOST magical

Today was Castaway Cay - Disney's private Island..

I don't have the time to blog about it now.. but suffice it to say - sun, sand, 86 degree CLEAR day, beautiful clear water, snorkeling with everyone, then alone with Dawn... 2 hours of floating in the clearest water ever with tons of fish ! ahhh.... paradise!

Day nine...

Ahh, sleeping in… nice to get up at around 9 instead of 6! Did our laundry, Dawn went to the Gym, Garhett & I watched Transformers, Ashley went to the pool with the rest of the group. Then we joined everyone at the pool for lunch, a quick game of Phase 10. Then watched an ice carver. We all went to the Artist Palate and took a class on how to draw Mickey. Then walked around the ship to check out the areas we hadn’t seen yet with Tim & Michelle then took family pictures with Dave Peeters (Michelle’s dad), which was quite interesting with a bunch of people trying to mess up Dave’s shots.

Before dinner we went to the movies and saw Enchanted. A very funny show with a lot of Disney “hidden” stuff in the movie!

Dinner at The Artist’s Palate, a 4.2 million dollar restaurant which entertains you as you eat. The room starts out black and white then throughout the evening fills in with color. Even your servers go from black and white clothing to full color clothing. Really nice! Dawn had, butter nut squash soup, smoked salmon/cream cheese appetizer, stuffed chicken breast and potato (orange colored), dessert – chocolate and peanut butter pie. I tried the Caesar salad, Creamed mushrooms in filo dough, veal cutlet and finished with a strawberry shortcake. The kids joined us tonight and we all dressed up. During dinner, the ship took off from Nassau and immediately after dinner we were treated to a Pirate Party, dessert buffet and fireworks. Disney is the only cruise ship which has a huge firework show at sea. Then off to bed as the ship sails to Disney’s private Island, Castaway Cay!

Goodnight!

Day eight...

This morning we packed up our hotel room and boarded our private bus to head to Port Canaveral to get on the Disney Wonder cruise ship. During the ride I was surprised by the number of lakes located along the highway. Walt Disney World is really located remotely within the Orlando area. Tim told me that DisneyWorld is it’s own city – Lake Buena Vista!

Well, we arrived on the dock for the ship and along the way we found out that the Space Shuttle was due to take off at 4:30 today – it just so happens that Cape Canaveral is located right across the water from the ship – so we were going to have front “bow” seats for the launch! Until we found out the launch was scrubbed and was postponed until Friday – the day AFTER we leave. Major bummer.

Anyway, I am blogging this as I sit on the deck of the Disney Wonder with my laptop connected to the Wifi! Disney is really amazing. They don’t miss a beat! This ship is amazing. The ship is designed with the feel and look of the great ocean liners of the past – even the dressers in the room are made to look like steamer trunks! Our stateroom has a veranda and a queen sized bed with a fold out couch-bed and a bunk that drops from the ceiling. Our keys to the world work on the ship as well – so, again… a cashless society!

Tonight we will feast at Triton’s restaurant and then off to the Broadway musical version of Hercules. Then we are going to see a movie – then, who knows. The kids each have their own clubs to hang out in and they were given pagers to give to the parents so that we always know where they are on the ship and they have wristbands that any crew member can use to contact us immediately ANYWHERE on the ship. Only Disney could be that organized.

I am telling you – if you have a family and can save up to take this trip – you definitely should do it! If you can go with other families that makes it even better! Although, if you don’t enjoy being around children – don’t go to the two pools on deck 5 – it is like an ant colony of children (the quiet pool is very serene though! – it is on the bow side of the center smoke stack!

Well, it is 3:15 – we have the launch party in about 1 hour and we have to get to our stateroom and unpack for the next 3 days.

Later!

**update**

Before dinner we saw Hercules, the musical. Very good show, great comedy by Hades! Typical Disney current pop culture relevant comedy (clean).

Dinner at Triton’s was really nice. Dawn, Garhett & I ate with the rest of the gang – the girls and Dylan went to the Oceanear’s Lab for the evening. Dinner was French cuisine. Dawn & I had escargot for appetizers. It was pretty good – we even made Garhett try it – of course, it was a tiny bit on a whole roll that he stuffed in his mouth – he said he didn’t taste it at all! Garhett tried Vichyssoise for the first time – he hated it. Dawn thought it was OK but would be better hot. Dawn had Potato leek soup, I tried a Normandy salad. Man that salad was good – Jenny is going to try to repeat it herself (hope she invites me over to try it!). Main courses, Dawn had the Rigatoni with bleu, feta, mozzarella and cheddar cheeses – she liked it. I had the roast beef with mashed potato and vegetable medley (two carrots and a zucchini). Desserts (we ordered 3) the Crème’ Brulee’ which Dawn said was the best she’s ever had in her life. Chocolate soufflé with Grand Mariner/chocolate sauce and I tried the fresh fruit – the fruit in the Caribbean is so fresh and sweet!
After dinner we put the kids to bed, sent Garhett to “aloft” for some teen interaction then went to the movie theatre to see “Dan in Real Life”. A good movie!

Day seven... WARNING... LONG POSTS AHEAD

Today we spent the whole day at Epcot. In the morning we were going to spend the time seeing some of the shows we missed on previous days, have lunch at Le Cellier, a (yuk) Canadian steak house. I nearly went the entire meal without speaking to the wait staff, purely on principle. For dinner we ate around the world. We went around the world showcase and ate a small sample of cuisine from each country. Urp! Egg rolls from China, Lefse and Jarlsburg and roast beef from Norway, apple strudel with vanilla crème from Germany, Funnel cakes with strawberries from America, limonata sorbetti from Italy, the last time we were in the world showcase we ate enchiladas, tacos and black beans from Mexico, Miso soup, kaki-age Udon, teriyaki chicken and chicken curry from Japan. The finale’ was to go to france and eat as many deserts as you can!

The last event of the night was to go to the Candlelight procession and enjoy Monique from High School Musical read the Christmas story from Luke. Very moving.

Catchin' up after the cruise~ Day six...

Day 6
Animal kingdom day, Lion King show... amazing...
Boardwalk at night
Dylan performed with street vendor
Ice cream at beaches and cream – ordered the kitchen sink!

Day four & five...

Sorry about not blogging yesterday... was really really tired.

It is after 1am here now and I must get to bed - we leave for the cruise tomorrow in the AM and I have to get to sleep. I have posted a widget on the sidebar that will flip through the 200+ photos that Dawn, Ashley and I have taken. I will move them into a better post or two over the next few days as the Cruise portion of our trip will have much more down time.

Suffice it to say - we are having the trip of a lifetime!

All thanks to our friends the Lasch's for suggesting it!

Whoooo hoooooo!

Goodnite~

Day Three...

Oh my gosh are we tired!

We spent the whole day at Disney's MGM Studios. The WHOLE stinkin' day and all of us have tired feet. At Disneyland we are used to those wonderful trams to get us to the park entrance - not here at WDW - we went by boat - a "friendship" to be exact. Took a 15 minute boat ride across the lake (that is right in front of the hotel we are staying in) to the main entrance of the park.

After using our 'key to the kingdom' to get in (oh, you have to place your index finger in a scanner to prove it is your key - cool eh?!) we headed right over to the "Rockin' Rollercoaster" which features Aerosmith. Really cool ride - really fast and really smooth.

Then almost everyone (that is a nice way of saying - NOT ME) went on the Hollywood Tower of Terror. A quick note; the bellhop uniforms are slightly different here - Disneyland's are better looking. After that it was onto the Great Movie Ride where we were treated to animatronic and live action scenes from some movies!

We had reservations for lunch at the Sci-Fi cafe - but they were closed for the day - so we ate at Pizza Planet and relaxed for a while before going to see, Star Tours, shopping, The Magic of Animation, shopping, Indiana Stunt Show specacular, Beauty and the Beast stage show, Back Lot Tour, Lights Motors Action! stunt show, and then Fantasmic! WHEW... Oh, and just after dusk we saw the Osborne family spectacle of dancing lights.

Then, a boat ride back to the hotel and put the kids to bed. Now, Dawn, me, Tim and Michelle are chilling in the lobby of the hotel - they are reading (sheesh, this is a vacation! what's up with reading...) as I blog. Well, that's day 3.

Lot's of fun, food, shopping and exciting stuff to see!

More tomorrow...

Goodnight!

Day Two...

**Quick shout out to Maureen ... Woooo hooooo!

Well, here is how the day went...

Left the airport hotel early - 8AM (5AM CA time) hopped on the Disney Magical Express to get shuttled to Walt Disney World Resort. Man, this place is big! The ride was pretty cool too!

We checked in to the Beach Club Resort (and spa) and headed over to Epcot with our "keys to the kingdom" really cool - it is your room key, passport to all the theme parks, charge card and passport to the Disney cruise as well (that comes in three more days).

We walked (briskly) through a couple of the nationally themed 'lands' (actually called the World Showcase) to our first destination, to get fast passes to the "test track" ride. We came back to that ride later - a must ride for anyone who likes to go fast! The kids (including Darrenn) went back and rode it 3 more times just before the park closed.

Then it was a little shopping, ride on Nemo's adventure, then we all went visting in the aquarium and checked out the manatees (Darrenn was sad there weren't any womanatees) and then a quick stop at the Coca-cola place where we sampled coke products from around the world.

I heartily advise trying the Beverly soda from Italy. YUM! But you don't have to take my word for it, just ask Tim & Michelle!

Then off to my first favorite stop - The Rose and Crown Pub for lunch. (said in the best cockney accent I can muster) Stopped for a bite of some bangers and mash - well actually I had fish and chips. Then off for more adventures. On Wednesday night we will come back to Epcot to "eat around the world" - this is apparently a self guided tour through all the nationally themed "lands" where one must endure the pain of sampling ONE dish from that particular land - this is something that the Lasch's and Platt's discovered last time and I actually am looking forward to it!

So, back to Epcot... We toured a few more areas then went back to the hotel to get our rooms. Then off to the pool, er... more like a small water park. You see while the northern US suffers from snow and ice, we are enjoying HUMID 85 degree weather - in DECEMBER. Well after a slide down the huge water slide, a swim across the LARGE lake sized, sandy bottom pool, it was time for dinner. We went back to Epcot to grab a bite at the nation of Japan.

Some Udon, Miso, Curry and Teriyaki washed down with some green tea and we were ready for a pastry, or three, from France (where I comfortably ordered a glass of water in the native language) - then off to bed. WHEW... and tomorrow, MGM!

Dawn has already started saying... We are doing this again!

**more photos tomorrow, its 1AM EST. and I have a slow internet connection... where's a St. arbucks when you need one!

Goodnight!

Day One...

Well, after a 4 hour and 9 minute flight (that was delayed 1 hour at LAX due to the bathroom sinks being plugged) we arrived safe and sound.

Well, almost all of us - - Dave and Sharon are due in around 11:30 tonight.

**update** Dave and Sharon arrived tonight (12/2/07 at about 11pm due to the severe storms in the northern US. They left through the OC airport going to Chicago and then on to Orlando - only to get sidetracked overnight in Chicago, then through Washington DC (Dulles) and finally on to Orlando... Where it was 85 degrees and humid!!! Thank God they arrived safely.

We just finished dinner at Macaroni Grill - and now it is 10:30 local time and we are heading to bed. Our first night is going to be spent in the Hyatt Regency - a hotel in the Orlando International Airport. Very nice!

Shout out to Tim Lasch for being the planner/coordinator extraordinaire! He put this whole trip together and set the itinerary. We meet in the lobby of the hotel at 8AM tomorrow to leave for our 2nd hotel - The Beach Club, then off to Epcot for day 1 of DisneyWorld!

The whole family is soooo excited!

Photos tomorrow.

Goodnight!

At LAX just about to board!

Ashley took this photo at 37,000 feet. Nice being so much closer to God eh?!

Immediately after arrival we went right to dinner - Macaroni Grill!